The Data

Country   USA

Appellation   Adelaida District

Varietal   Red Blend

Retail Price   $60

ABV   14.5%

Score   5 Stars/97 points

In the Glass

Brilliant, deep ruby color.

The aromatics are very intense offering scents of blackberry, black tea, and earth with supporting notes of smoked meat, mocha, violet, blackcurrant, and cigar box.

The palate confirms the nose delivering a black fruit-driven core with flavors of plum, black cherry, and sweet balsamic. The finish is long and lingering with chewy and ripe tannins with crushed black fruits and mineral.

Full-bodied and perfectly balanced with a meaty texture.

Cool Factor

Tablas Creek is a unique winery in California seamlessly marrying Old World and New World winemaking and setting the standard for Rhone varietals in California. What could be cooler?

Value Grade

This is not your everyday wine as it's Tablas Creek's top red blend. Considering the pedigree, class, and pure hedonistic pleasure we find it to be a value at $60.

Analysis

This dense and charming Châteauneuf du Pape tribute created in Paso Robles is crafted with a blend of 40% Mourvedre, 35% Syrah, 20% Grenache, and 5% Counoise. In this Tablas Creek red their dense estate-grown Mourvedre takes the lead, which is unmistakable from the first nosing to the last sip. The grapes for this wine were grown in their certified organic and biodynamic estate vineyard. The four varietals were all fermented separately in a variety of vessels from wooden, upright fermenters, open-top tanks, and closed stainless steel. The best lots were blended in May 2018 and then rested in a foudre for an additional year before bottling. This is a beautiful, gentle beast of a wine.

How to Enjoy

This dense and rich wine really needs to be decanted to be fully enjoyed. It does drink very well now but cellaring will undoubtedly reveal additional nuances. This wine will live for a decade-plus in your cellar. Pair with roasted duck, grilled lamb, or beef braised in red wine.